The Harlem Writers Guild (formerly known as the Harlem Writers Club) was set up in 1950 as a forum where African-American writers could develop their craft. After funding for an organization active in the late 1940s called "The Committee for the Negro in the Arts" ended, these writers felt excluded from the mainstream literary culture of
New York City. The HWG was also part of the
Black Arts Movement of the 1960s, and its rationale continues to be to develop and aid in the publication of works by writers of the
African diaspora. Other writers who have been associated with the HWG include
Lonne Elder III,
Douglas Turner Ward,
Ossie Davis,
Paule Marshall,
Audre Lorde,
Maya Angelou and
Sarah E. Wright. In the 1950s,
John Oliver Killens had invited several aspiring African-American writers to meet at a shop in Harlem to hear and review one another's literature. The Harlem Writers Guild thus began expanding, with new authors writing and publishing work emphasizing topics such as racism, oppression, and welfare. The Harlem Writers Guild was a tool that was used by African-American authors of its presence to uniquely divide their literary work against mainstream literature that neglected
African-American literature. Emphasizing on expanding their literary works as well as creating a space for advantageous advertisement of their work, the Harlem Writers Guild used their social circles and their academic voices towards social change. During the 1960s, the group supported
Malcolm X, conflicts of independent rights in Angola and Mozambique and organized to dismantle racist policies established in South Africa. The group used their connections to communicate about marches,
Freedom Rides, and other progressive organizations. This boom was so prevalent it was regarded as the rebirth of African-American arts. The prevalence in the Harlem neighborhoods began as a root within the African diaspora, somewhere many African Americans traveled to and combined feelings of culture and community. The growing prevalence of African-American art forms paved the way for a new era of African-American literature to enroll. == Members ==